Popular baby names in Virginia, 1920

The most popular baby names in Virginia in 1920 were Mary for girls (2,046 babies) and James for boys (1,888). James ranked #4 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 52,689 babies born in Virginia in 1920 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Virginia in 1920

Names given at least 15 times in Virginia that year and at least twice as common as in the US as a whole.

Girls

Alease: 18 babies, 15.6× the national rate
Pattie: 22 babies, 11.2× the national rate
Nannie: 106 babies, 6.7× the national rate
Lelia: 37 babies, 5.6× the national rate
Eliza: 37 babies, 3.9× the national rate
Queen: 21 babies, 3.8× the national rate
Virgie: 47 babies, 3.7× the national rate
Sallie: 69 babies, 3.6× the national rate
Gracie: 46 babies, 3.6× the national rate
Patsy: 17 babies, 3.6× the national rate

Boys

Linwood: 44 babies, 12.1× the national rate
Junius: 35 babies, 10.3× the national rate
Randolph: 57 babies, 8.6× the national rate
Garnett: 16 babies, 8.2× the national rate
Beverly: 17 babies, 8× the national rate
Everette: 22 babies, 6× the national rate
Raleigh: 18 babies, 6× the national rate
Garland: 49 babies, 5.4× the national rate
Lemuel: 17 babies, 5.2× the national rate
Aubrey: 47 babies, 4.4× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Virginia, 1920

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1919	US rank
1	Mary	2,046	–	1
2	Virginia	849	–	7
3	Margaret	825	–	4
4	Dorothy	792	–	2
5	Helen	636	–	3
6	Elizabeth	602	–	8
7	Ruth	586	–	5
8	Frances	528	–	9
9	Mildred	495	–	6
10	Louise	486	–	19
11	Annie	415	–	35
12	Ruby	381	↑4	26
13	Evelyn	376	↑2	12
14	Gladys	375	↓2	22
15	Edith	357	↓1	32
16	Thelma	310	↓3	31
17	Ethel	307	↑2	30
18	Hazel	292	↑3	34
19	Alice	291	↓2	15
20	Lillian	288	–	18
21	Edna	280	↑2	27
22	Martha	269	↓4	23
23	Lucille	265	↓1	29
24	Marie	241	↑5	13
25	Catherine	233	–	21
26	Sarah	227	↓2	50
27	Anna	223	↓1	10
28	Doris	219	–	14
29	Elsie	200	↓2	51
30	Pauline	200	↑1	36
31	Irene	190	↑3	17
32	Emma	184	–	46
33	Myrtle	184	↑13	68
34	Katherine	181	↑5	45
35	Bessie	170	↑1	71
36	Lucy	170	↑4	94
37	Nellie	169	↓7	76
38	Florence	167	↑9	16
39	Rosa	166	↓6	>100
40	Grace	160	↓2	37
41	Beatrice	159	↓4	41
42	Bernice	159	↑2	40
43	Laura	159	new	63
44	Ella	155	new	88
45	Viola	152	new	59
46	Bertha	151	↓11	57
47	Clara	148	↓5	44
48	Eva	146	–	58
49	Nancy	146	–	95
50	Pearl	146	↓9	62

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1919	US rank
1	James	1,888	–	4
2	William	1,680	–	2
3	John	1,315	–	1
4	Robert	976	–	3
5	George	747	–	6
6	Charles	724	–	5
7	Thomas	522	–	11
8	Joseph	455	–	7
9	Edward	403	–	8
10	Richard	339	↑2	10
11	Henry	321	–	17
12	Walter	308	↓2	13
13	Willie	302	↑2	29
14	Clarence	282	↓1	26
15	Frank	281	↓1	9
16	Harry	270	–	21
17	Samuel	250	↑2	44
18	Raymond	228	↓1	15
19	Arthur	213	↑5	18
20	Roy	209	–	32
21	Charlie	204	↓3	70
22	Paul	198	↓1	14
23	Ernest	195	↑2	37
24	Warren	191	new	39
25	Howard	190	↓3	24
26	Ralph	188	↑2	22
27	Herbert	173	↓4	41
28	Albert	172	↑3	19
29	Earl	165	↓2	31
30	Harold	165	↓1	12
31	David	163	↓5	25
32	Carl	161	–	27
33	Lewis	143	↑2	72
34	Fred	138	↓1	33
35	Eugene	129	↑5	30
36	Herman	127	↓6	66
37	Jack	127	↓1	20
38	Lawrence	126	↓4	36
39	Leonard	116	new	38
40	Bernard	104	↑9	46
41	Melvin	102	new	54
42	Cecil	99	new	77
43	Elmer	98	–	45
44	Floyd	98	–	61
45	Russell	98	↓8	51
46	Claude	97	↓8	92
47	Jesse	97	↓5	79
48	Louis	97	↓7	28
49	Joe	95	↓10	35
50	Clyde	94	↓5	68

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